Which to use
“coerção” and “cordão” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #27,790
- “coerção” frequency rank
- #11,038
- “cordão” frequency rank
- 38828
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | coerção | cordão |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | ato ou efeito de reprimir; repressão | corda fina e flexível |
Where the eye mixes coerção and cordão
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. coerção runs 7 letters (CVVCCVV) against cordão's 6 (CVCCVV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses coerção with cordão
A purely visual mix-up. coerção (/kweɾ.ˈsɐ̃w̃/) and cordão (/kuɾ.ˈdɐ̃w̃/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 38828, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
coerção is recorded at frequency rank #27,790, classified as anoun, pronounced /kweɾ.ˈsɐ̃w̃/. cordão is at rank #11,038, tagged as anoun, pronounced /kuɾ.ˈdɐ̃w̃/.
Glosses for this pair are partially populated in our dataset, but the full side-by-side definitions above should still guide you to the right choice.
With a confusion score of 38828, this pair ranks #27,561 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of coerção vs cordão
Shared letters: corã. Private to "coerção": eç. Private to "cordão": d.
"coerção" · 7 letters · shape CVVCCVV · "cordão" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "coerção" for "cordão" ever safe?
Which is more common, "coerção" or "cordão"?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "coerção" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "cordão" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #27,561 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "coerção" and "cordão" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "cerda vs cordão". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #27,561 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.